Category Archives: Body Lotion

Skin Absorbs Most Toxins

By Joan Kesman, Skin Care Plus, the best facials and natural skin care products in Chicago, Geneva, Batavia, St. Charles and beyond.

Our spa is all about personal and natural skin care. Why should you care? Just like our fingerprints, everyone’s overall skin condition, complexion and chemistry is different. Combine that with age-related factors and dietary factors, allergies and sensitivities, and there is not a silver bullet or a one-size-fits-all remedy that we can pull off the shelf and apply like tonic water. A personal evaluation and a personal approach makes a noticeable difference quickly.

Secondly, the natural aspect of skin care is equally important. Remember, our skin is the largest organ of the body. It absorbs everything applied–good and bad. Some products are questionable. Some are outright toxic and carcinogenic. An alarming amount of skin care products contain petroleum byproducts, such as parabens (a group of chemicals widely used as preservatives in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries to extend the shelf life of products). They have been linked to cancer, and may have an estrogenic effect. These chemicals can be found in face and body moisturizers, body wash, and cleansers.

Bad skin care products can cause pores to become clogged and circulation impaired. So, age, race, diet, stress, place of residence and work (toxins), and hereditary factors all can play a role in skin condition, anti-aging and the personal treatment necessary to achieve optimum health. Start a personal skin care plan today with a personal consultation and recommendation. You will look and feel your best.

Remember, the most beneficial skin care products come from nature, not a lab, oil field, or animal. If it belongs in your kitchen, it belongs on and in your body. Question anything that contains animal-based ingredients.

To find out more about the importance of facials and natural skin care products, please contact Skin Care Plus. We use and recommend the best natural and organic skin care products available. We also offer other skin care treatments that can help with anti-aging and overall skin health, including the best facial in the greater Chicago area, including Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles.

Animal-Based Skin Care Products Carry Unnecessary Risks

Why are women dying from Alzheimer’s at a higher rate than men? Could it be that our cosmetic procedures and products are prion pathways? Doctors say “yes.” Other risky cosmetic procedures involve facial injections for filling wrinkles or plumping skin. Zyderm and Zyplast, for example, are promoted as premium collagen from cattle, “a soft tissue dermal filler made from purified cow skin used to fill wrinkles, lines and scars on the face.” If these factories ever process contaminated material, all future supplies will become contaminated. Since we don’t test cattle comprehensively for prion disease, it’s impossible to quantify the risk factor. It’s also impossible to eliminate that risk factor from the law of probabilities.

Some ingredient code words to watch for on soaps, cleansers, skin lotions, shampoos, conditioners and other personal care products include, stearic acid, myristic, lauric, oleic, palmitic acids, collagen and glycerin. Some of the safest products are made by Alba Botanical, Dr. Bronner’s and NOW Foods. Skin is the body’s largest living, breathing organ. What we feed our skin and scalp gets absorbed directly into the body. The proximity of the brain to our scalps, faces, eyes, lips and mouth, demands scrutiny of the chemicals that we pour on our heads and shoulders. When in doubt, make homemade lotions with ingredients that you know and trust. Several recipes are available online.

To find out more about the importance of natural skin care products, please contact Skin Care Plus. We use and recommend the best natural and organic skin care products available. We also offer other skin care treatments that can help with anti-aging and overall skin health, including the best facial in the greater Chicago area, including Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles.

Natural Skin Care Products Easy To Make

Lotion is a top offender for beauty products. The skin is the biggest organ in the body, and many chemicals can be absorbed by the skin and stored in fat tissue. If you’re tired of all the chemicals and fragrances added to most store-bought creams and lotions, consider making your own—it isn’t difficult.

Natural Substitutes: The best natural lotion I have found so far is just pure organic Coconut Oil. It is able to penetrate the skin and the medium chain fatty acids help with wrinkles, dry skin, and other skin problems and since it is naturally antibacterial, it won’t cause breakouts. There are also countless ways to combine coconut oil with other oils, butters, essential oils and herbs to create solutions for your specific skin. I frequently make my own and give them as gifts to friends and family members who seem to love them.

If you can, I recommend that you keep an old blender, a small- to medium-size glass bowl, and a spatula that you use solely for making natural aromatherapy products. While you can use your kitchen blender, the beeswax found in natural creams can leave a residue on the blender and utensils used. Here’s what you’ll need:

3/4 cup of pure oil (I like sweet almond oil since it absorbs well and doesn’t leave a greasy film. 1 cup of pure water (or use rose water) 2 Tablespoons of shaved beeswax (be sure to avoid other types of wax since they are made of petroleum byproducts) 30 drops of essential oils (like lavender, ylang ylang, bergamot, or other oil. Make sure you avoid “fragrance oil” since it is synthetic. Lavender is a great one to start with since it is aromatic but also soothes sunburns, other types of burns, and is healing for most skin types). a glass jar or small glass jars for storing the lotion

Making The Lotion: Pour the oil into a Pyrex measuring cup and add the shaved beeswax. Set it in a saucepan of water that reaches about halfway up the side of the Pyrex container. Heat over the stove until the beeswax dissolves and remove from the stove immediately. Allow to cool for a minute or two but not longer than that since the beeswax will begin to harden.

Pour the water into your blender and begin blending it on high speed with the lid on (with a hole left in the lid for pouring the beeswax-oil mixture). Slowly pour the oil-beeswax mixture into the water. It will begin to emulsify as you continue pouring the oil. It normally begins to thicken after about three-quarters of the oil has been incorporated. Continue adding the oil until you’ve incorporated all of it into the water.

Add the drops of essential oils you’ve selected. Blend them into the lotion. Pour the lotion into the glass jars you’ve selected for storing the cream. Use the spatula to remove any remaining lotion from the blender. The lotion lasts for about 6 months and is best kept at cool temperatures to prolong shelf life. You can store it in the fridge if you choose to keep it fresh.

For more information about personal and natural skin care, including the best facials in the greater Chicago area (including, Geneva, St. Charles, Batavia and Wheaton), contact Joan Kesman at Skin Care Plus.

To find out more about the importance of facials and natural skin care products, please contact Skin Care Plus. We use and recommend the best natural and organic skin care products available. We also offer other skin care treatments that can help with anti-aging and overall skin health, including the best facial in the greater Chicago area, including Batavia, Geneva, and St. Charles.